Stay Healthy This Winter With These Vital Vitamins

When temperatures drop, your risk of catching a cold increases. But how can you keep from getting sick? Get plenty of exercise, stay warm and eat a balanced diet. In today’s blog post, we will tell you which five vitamins are essential in winter .

VITAMIN D 

Vitamin D is the most important supplement to take during every winter season. Due to less sunlight caused by shorter days, our bodies naturally produce less vitamin D .

Vitamin D. the “sunshine vitamin.” Your body produces vitamin D when your skin is exposed to sunlight, which can be a bit problematic during the winter when the days are shorter and it's too cold to spend a lot of time outdoors. 

As our main source of vitamin D is from the action of sunlight on our skin, it's particularly important to supplement over the winter when exposure to sunlight is limited. The result of vitamin D deficiency includes reduced immune function ,impaird bone health , mood skin and dry skin  .

VITAMIN C

While Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) can’t protect you from colds, it can shorten the length of time you are sick .If your body is low in vitamin C, it won’t be able to ward off germs as effectively as usual. Therefore, an adequate supply of vitamin C is crucial in winter!

For many years Vitamin C has been thought as the number one home remedy for keeping colds at bay. However, research within the last decade has found that taking vitamin C everyday does not reduce a person’s risk of getting one, but it does lessen the severity of a cold's symptoms and shorten the duration of the illness. Therefore getting sufficient amounts of the vitamin is particularly important during winter when there is a spike in people suffering a cold.

VITAMIN B

The B vitamins are a group of 8 vitamins sometimes called the “anti-stress vitamins” since they’re essential for combating the effects of stress. They are used to create the feel-good neurotransmitters responsible for maintaining a positive mood as well as being critical for a healthy nervous system.

The role of vitamin 12 in particular, could help us during the colder months as it has been shown to help those suffering from feelings of anxiety or depression. This is particular important during winter when people are more at risk of feelings of depression, winter blues or seasonal affective disorder (SAD). 

VITAMIN A

Vitamin A helps the body’s immune system work properly, helps improve vision in dim light, and keeps the skin and lining of some parts of the body healthy.

Good sources of vitamin A include cheese, eggs, oily fish, some fortified foods, milk and yoghurt.

OMEGA -3 FATTY ACIDS 

These are essential when it comes to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and avoiding the winter blahs. Omega-3 fatty acids can help to boost your immune system, your mental focus and help with winter colds and flus.